脂肪と言う名の服を着て

SHIBOU TO IU NA NO FUKU WO KITE

MANGA

STATUS
COMPLETE
VOLUMES
1
RELEASE
Invalid Date
CHAPTERS
15

DESCRIPTION

From the pen of Moyoco Anno comes a stunning tale of self-image and self-loathing. In Clothes Called Fat details the lives of young women earnestly revealing the struggles women may have with their bodies and sexuality.

Noko appears to be living a great life, she's got a good job and a loving boyfriend, but beneath a thin veneer is a young woman who is struggling with her self-image and self-confidence as she fights to keep her weight down. To Noko, being 5 pounds overweight means being miles away from happiness in her lovelife and in her work-place.

(Source: Kodansha USA)

CAST

Noko Hanazawa

CHAPTERS

REVIEWS

KawaiiNyan
70/100
A Discomforting & Honest Look at Body Shaming
This was a very difficult manga for me to read. I have been struggling with self-confidence and body image problems for many years. This isn’t something I normally chat about, but I am what most people would call a fat person. I am approximately fifty to sixty pounds overweight and it can be such an intense challenge living with my appearance and how my appearance makes me feel on a day-to-day basis. My go-to clothing consists of slightly baggy chinos and long-sleeved, oversized shirts in an effort to help diminish my obviously round and plump figure. So, when this manga dove right into all of the reasons that our main character—Noko Hanazawa—feels so compelled to eat all of the time, or why she chose to resort to dangerous tactics to lose weight, I was stunned to silence. I felt like I was reading a private journal that I had written and hidden away somewhere, at least to a certain degree.

The manga begins by showing the reader a glimpse into Noko’s thought processes. She views herself as being fat and ugly and it makes her sorrowful. These toxic feelings are then validated by how other people treat her. Many people call her a “pig” or “ugly” without ever trying to be discreet about it (not that that would make it any less shitty or harmful). A lot of the comfort that she obtains to combat her inherent feelings of negativity stem from food.

When I read the first few pages, I was immediately drawn into the manga all the while wanting desperately to put it aside. My skin crawled with discomfort and recognition. I have lost count of the number of times that people have looked at me with disgust or have made rude and judgmental comments about my physical appearance to my face, let alone behind my back. It is not a good feeling. It makes you feel like you’re completely worthless and a terribly hideous thing that needs to be caged away in a room somewhere. This is one of the major reasons I’m such an agoraphobic.

In Clothes Called Fat takes these feelings and slams them onto the pages of this manga to exhibit how fat people deal with being fat (and I’m not talking about all fat people because many of them don’t have insecurities and rather they feel empowered in their bodies, which is so fucking amazing) and how social expectations of beauty are ridiculously harmful.

We have this preconceived notion of how being stunning can only be accomplished if you’re a size two and how this superficiality is rewarded time-and-time again. A good example of this is with Noko’s job. She was a co-worker who absolutely loathes her simply because Noko is a bigger girl. As such, she goes out of her way to constantly get Noko in trouble. Because Noko is so frightened of people (who can blame her really?), and she’s quiet and reserved, no one believes that this skinny and gorgeous woman could be the one at fault.

We also see how society looks at fat people, especially women, by the clothes that are (in this case, are not) available to them. In one scene, Noko’s co-workers give her a bad time because her brassiere is old and a bit tattered. She has an inner monologue about how difficult it is to find beautiful clothes when you are in the double digits of sizing. This was another portion of the book that hit me straight in the gut. Sexy lingerie was something I was really into when I was younger, but after I put on lots of weight, the sexiest thing I could come across that wouldn’t cost me a couple of hundred of bucks was a cotton nightie that looked like it was for someone much older than me. The feelings of depression and the self-deprecating thoughts that come afterwards are indescribable.

Noko’s story isn’t the only one that we get to experience in In Clothes Called Fat. While she’s the centrepiece, we also see how smaller people can feel threatened by fat people. One of the women feels so threatened by Noko that she makes it her life’s ambition to completely destroy Noko’s sense of self in every way imaginable. There is a man who is dating a fat woman for the most illogical reasons conceivable: it makes him feel safe because he knows she can’t be taken away from him and it also makes him feel like he’s doing a good deed somehow because this fat person “could only be so lucky” to have a boyfriend/significant other at all. It’s some very fascinating stuff to read because of how fucking real and close to home it can be.

There is a whole other message to In Clothes Called Fat as well: unhealthy obsession with weight loss. Noko becomes so unbelievably fixated on losing weight that she uses all of her money to join some fancy weight-loss spa and then begins her treacherous journey into bulimia.

I have never been bulimic, but I have (in the past) starved myself for weeks on end and attempted a plethora of pointless diets. I never had the money to invest in weight-loss programmes, or I may have done that as well. But if I’m to be utterly frank here, I have had thoughts of bulimia in the past. It’s one of those things that in the very back of your mind you know is an absolutely outrageous decision, yet your present feelings of inadequacy or so overpowering that you become desperate enough to do anything, more so when the voices everyone laughing at you and insulting you keep resonating within your head.

Bulimia is not healthy, in any shape of form. It’s damaging and deadly, and that’s how it’s depicted in the manga. We see how becoming bulimic affects Noko’s physical appearance and how instead of allaying her insecurities, it amps them up even further and it’s literally all she thinks about. Losing weight that quickly and in such an unhealthy fashion takes a severe toll on her physical body, making her appear quite scary and ghoulish.

I think my favourite part of the series, however, are the small portions that highlight how Noko’s body isn’t something to be shunned and stowed away within a dark room. She has a chance encounter with someone who tries to tell her that her body is beautiful with all if its curves and the shapes. While it was slightly creepy given the circumstances, I also understood what this individual was portraying. I have only ever had one person in my life share a similar opinion with me.

Everything is further intensified by the art style. The drawings take on the classic sketch type appearance and feel untidy and slightly cartoony, but this is done intentionally to showcase the messy thoughts of our main character. Her emotions and mental well-being are portrayed via the artistry in ways that help create an even more haunting and discomforting reading experience, which is perfect given the material. While it can be off-putting for many folks, it’s definitely worth taking a gander at, nonetheless.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the shallow and superficial meanings of what beauty is to the point of losing yourself entirely, whether physically or psychologically. In Clothes Called Fat is an excellent manga that truly centralises that point, and I believe that anyone—regardless of gender or body shape—should take time to read this story. The topics are some that are rarely discussed, particularly in Asian communities, and are the ones that need the most attention, especially in today’s climate where loving oneself and hating oneself seems to be a very strained balance.

If you are interested in checking out more works by this author, I recommend trying Sakuran, which is a historical manga about a young prostitute that deals with similar themes.

7 outta 10.
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Kohiimiruku
85/100
It’s actually good, a must read manga ?Please read the tws before starting this manga!
"In the Clothes Named Fat" is a remarkable work of art by Moyoco Anno sensei that addresses delicate subjects like eating disorders, body dysmorphia, and other taboo / sensitive topics, including trauma-bonding, bullying, and cheating. The manga's content might be triggering for some readers, so it is better to proceed with caution and understand what you're getting into before getting into it.

Short summary

The story revolves around the main character, Noko, who is an obese woman that has to face the harsh realities of beauty standards and a toxic workplace environment. Adding to her struggles, she has to deal with her cheating boyfriend and their unhealthy relationship, which includes his mental and personality problems and his infidelity, that is portrayed throughout the story later.

Personal review

As someone who has battled an eating disorder, this manga gave me a sense of validation. It offers a realistic view of how anorexia, bulimia, and other eating disorders are far from cute or “aesthetic.” as portrayed in the media. Instead, they're harmful, and that is why I appreciate how the mangaka perfectly captures Noko's self-loathing, jealousy, and self-deprecation that comes with trauma bonding and body dysmorphia. However, some panels might be very difficult to read, because the ”ugly” parts of having an ED, such as purging/vomiting and binge eating, are explicitly drawn. (Again) If you're triggered by such topics, it's best to avoid this manga.

Now, onto the parts of the manga that I did not like, which is the ending of this story [spoiler alert!!!] The story concludes with Noko becoming very thin, which, in my opinion, wasn't a very good ending. While I understand that not every manga needs to have a moral message, I believe the author missed a chance to depict this issue better. Given how delicate and important the topic is, I believe the ending could have been better ??

Overall, "In the Clothes Named Fat" is an emotional and eye-opening manga that reveals the destructive influence of beauty standards, societal constructs, and sexual objectification on women. It's a heavy yet one of the best manga I've read so far. I hope that in the future, more mangaka will address sensitive issues like this, and of course with a better execution, this does not mean that I'm saying this manga is bad, it's just that I think the topic deserves more attention and care….

(Adding this just to fulfill the required 2100 characters )
Overall, "In the Clothes Named Fat" is an emotional and eye-opening manga that reveals the destructive influence of beauty standards, societal constructs, and sexual objectification on women. It's a heavy yet one of the best manga I've read so far. I hope that in the future, more mangaka will address sensitive issues like this, and of course with a better execution, this does not mean that I'm saying this manga is bad, it's just that I think the topic deserves more attention and care….
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xJoju
90/100
On Noko's journey, she learns that living a meaningful life isn't dependent on her body type.
Spoilerless version:

The manga’s synopsis describes Noko as living the life any woman would want. A great job, a loving boyfriend, possessing youth and opportunity within her reach. Reading the manga in actuality, I didn’t see Noko and her life that way at all. Her life is loathsome. She uses food and men as comfort to avoid confronting what she believes about her own identity. She can’t stand up for herself. She describes herself “clamming up” in moments when she knows that she should say something. All to appease others, all to avoid drawing attention. Her so-called loving boyfriend, Saitou, uses her for comfort, but in the worst way. Come to find out that he’s a despicable person who is rude to his mother and regularly cheats on Noko.

The relationship between Noko and Saitou is devoid of affection. He spends his evenings going over to her place and having mindless, passionless sex. The lives of everyone in the manga feel dull and vapid, to be honest. It’s the esthetician lady who breathes some life into the story, but only at the very end of the manga.

The fact that Noko believes keeping her man loyal is dependent on her losing weight, and her weight is the reason why he strays, is just more proof of how shallow their relationship is. In the end, all she needed to do was respect herself. Ironically, her lack of self-respect and confidence may have been why she wasted time with him for so long, and why she encountered the problems she did in her story.

I love Noko's character growth, and Tabata's weirdness was an entertaining break from the drama of the main group. She (Tabata) is such an off-kilter character, even amongst the misfits. I love that planning to take down Mayumi and her conspiracy theories about life waves-- it was good insight into how she thinks. Noko always talked about needing to build up her strength when she ate, but what she lacked was just the confidence to stop relying on comforts and seek a more meaningful life. I'm glad Noko was able to live a life she chose in the end, not feeling like she had to look a certain way to appease anyone or get caught up in office politics.

Why should you read the manga? This story is a great example of how groupthink can harm a person. How an irrationally high focus on oneself can warp a mind into believing that solving all of life’s issues is as simple as losing weight. This story is about how beautiful people who seemingly have their lives together can use the sickest ways to cope with life’s stresses. What I took from the story is one simple message— life goes on.

--

(!!) With spoilers:

Noko is an overweight office worker who is surrounded by people who seem to be eternally bored. She has a longtime boyfriend who refuses to bring her around his close friends, and despite meeting with her regularly, he also decides to cheat on her with one of her co-workers. Noko and Saitou, her boyfriend, are not married, and yet the scenes with them together feel like they might as well have been married for decades. When Saitou sees Noko, it only seems to be for comfort. For sex, for food. When Noko finally learns about Saitou cheating on her, she blames her coworker, Mayumi, instead of confronting Saitou. Noko’s inability to stand up for herself is a consistent character flaw that persists in the story and causes a lot of issues for her.

Lack of confidence is a persistent theme for Noko. She struggles to stand up and speak up for herself, particularly at work in regards to her manager. There’s a point in the story where someone mentions how no one talks back to the manager, and so, it feels like no one really likes him. The manager picks on Noko and makes snide comments about her work ethic, saying that if she doesn’t like it that she should “not bother working.” After a turning point in the story where Noko is framed for making a grievous mistake with the firm’s records, she is relocated underground with the rest of the misfit employees.

With time, it becomes apparent that Mayumi is not only a fellow employee but also a masterful criminal. She embezzles the money of her workplace and takes off, leaving Noko and Tabata to take the blame for another one of her crimes. In the end, the narrator tells us that justice as caught up with her, but we aren’t told exactly how.

“I’m not naked, because I’m wearing these clothes called fat.” - Noko’s final comment in the epilogue.

I’d been thinking about this final comment and what it means. I think that it’s Noko’s final statement on her development. She seems to finally feel some confidence in who she is. She’s been through a lot these past few months with her weight going up and down, and yet, despite her massive weight loss, people around her didn’t treat her any differently. Her boyfriend of several years still left her, and she still lost her job. Time still moves despite her body changes, but did her mind change with it?
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